Spirit for cheerleading builds

Cheerleading is diverging from the image of
girls leading the crowds and cheering on male athletes into a
competitive sport in its own right. Cheer squads, while historically
strong in the South, are expanding across the country, including Central
Pennsylvania.

Tricia Muffitt, 30, of Buffalo Twp. is
building a gym that will bring facilities now found in Mechanicsburg and
Harrisburg to Perry County.

Muffitt cheered through her time at
Hempfield High School in Lancaster County. She also cheered on the
collegiate level at Millersville University. In high school, she was an
all-American and competed in nationals.

A broken arm took her out of gymnastics, but she discovered cheerleading “was my passion.”

Cheerleading fever has spread over the
area, according to Muffitt. A few years ago the number of all-star
squads could be counted on one hand. Now, there are from 15 to 20. “And
it’s just in the last few years it’s really taken off,” Muffitt said.

Cheerleading is gaining recognition as a
sport because “It’s more gymnastics, more stunts,” she said.
“Competitive cheerleading is more of a sport now.”

Muffitt graduated from Millersville in
1998. She was selected for the Universal Cheerleading Association staff
in that year. She has taught high school cheerleading camps and kept
involved with the sport, training her own all-star squad at Newport
Elementary School and the old Nordic Gear building in Newport.

The site of the future gym will be on West
Juniata Parkway in Greenwood Twp., just south of the village of Old
Ferry. Currently, the only sign of construction is the muddy path
leading up to the nine-acre tract.

She said it will be 10,000 square feet of
space that will give cheerleaders access to top-notch facilities without
the drive to Harrisburg.

The building will sport a full-size spring
floor measuring 42 by 54 feet. A full-size wrestling mat will
accommodate a wrestling club to operate. A 40-foot long in-ground
tumbling trampoline with a pit of foam blocks at the end will allow
students to safely learn tumbling routines.

“It’s for the kids up here, and keeping it affordable,” said Muffitt. She currently works as a pharmaceutical representative.

The squad already has a name: PA Extreme.
Muffitt is looking forward to when her squad, decked in team colors of
black, silver and lime green, will have their own home. She said the
project ideally will be completed in April 2007.

Muffitt said the gym also will house an
all-star wrestling squad. She said she has interest from four area
coaches. She added that the building will be expandable, for example,
for indoor soccer. “The possibilities are endless.”

The popularity of cheer squads is
extending to younger and younger girls. Muffitt said she has taught
cheerleaders as young as 3. She noted, laughing, “Sometimes they’re
easier to work with than my senior squad.” The class is a lot less
technical, more developmental, but, “They’re just so excited to be
there.”

As far as the older girls, Muffit said
being part of a team helps with self-esteem. She has seen shy girls open
up as they go through competition. She recalled a fresh squad which had
never cheered before. “In their first competition they took third
place, and these girls had never cheered before.”

Anyone with questions for Muffitt can call her at 567-3812 or 576-5782.